Helpful Tips for Candle Burning & Buying

At many weddings you'll notice the use of candle lighting. Candles bring a soft, warm glow and romantic feel to your wedding reception. You may want to use them in your centerpieces, scatter tealights on your tables, and give candle wedding favors to your guests. Most of you know to proceed with caution when dealing with candles. Here are some helpful tips to not only burn carefully, but to shop and choose carefully too.

- Place your candles in proper location. DO put them in a candle holder or on a solid plate. DON'T place them near anything flammable or near walls (you may get a soot stain). You should avoid burning wobbly candles. And don't keep your candles less than three or four inches apart from each other - they will melt one another. As always, never leave a burning candle unattended.

- When shopping for candles, keep these tips in mind. Check the wicks by giving a light tug to ensure a strong and secure wick. Votives should have slightly thicker glass - thin glass may crack.

- The flame of a candle should never be more than two inches high. Trim your wicks to 1/4 inch to control the flame. Keep this in mind when purchasing unity candles for your wedding.

- Rather than blowing out your candles, invest in a candle snuffer (they're less than $5.00). If you choose to blow, keep a hand behind the flame to prevent the wax from getting everywhere.

- Candles should only burn for an hour at most, and should never be burned all the way to the end. If there's only a half an inch of wax left at the bottom of your jar, it's time to toss it. Pillars should be thrown out when there's two inches left.

- A helpful trick: if the wick is hard to reach when lighting, you can light the end of a piece of dry spaghetti to prevent burning yourself.